The Nexter
VBCI is a combat proven vehicle, since 2010 it has been successfully
deployed in Afghanistan by the French Army.

The
final text of the Declaration on Security and Defence signed at the UK-France
Summit in January 2014 has now been released and it reveals some details
about future European drone projects.

London and Paris will equally fund a total £120 million, two-year
common feasibility study for the combat drone, dubbed the Future Air Combat
System, the French MoD said in a statement.

The two countries agreed to investigate the possibility of working together
on an advanced combat drone, with France agreeing to evaluate the Anglo-Israeli
Watchkeeper drone. France is considering ordering since several years,
the Watchkeeper drone which is in service with the British Armed Forces.

The acquisition of same UAVs by the two European countries facilitates
international military operations and can reduce production costs and
support.

On cooperation in Europe, France has sent a combat vehicle, Véhicule
Blindé Combat d’Infanterie (VBCI), to the UK, while the French
Army is testing the Watchkeeper tactical UAV from the British Army.

The VBCI
is the latet generation of 8x8 armoured infantry fighting vehicle in service
with the French army. It is in service with the French Army since 2008.

VBCI now constitutes the spearhead of the French Army’s infantry
capability and Rapid Reaction Force. As such it has already been deployed
in a wide variety of missions abroad from peacekeeping (Lebanon) to counter-insurgency
(Afghanistan) or more conventional combat operations (Mali), further demonstrating
its inbuilt operational versatility.

VBCI's major advantages is its protection, an essential requirement for
modern armed forces, and highlighted by the experience acquired in the
latest NATO led operations. Having been designed to be capable of participating
alongside Main Battle Tanks in high-intensity combat operations, VBCI’s
levels of protection outclasses that of existing armoured vehicles.

Watchkeeper is based on the Elbit Hermes 450 UAV design and each aircraft
is believed to cost about £15 million.

Watchkeeper
WK450 is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for all weather, Intelligence,
Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance use by the British
Army. The Watchkeeper WK450 is based on the Elbit Hermes 450 UAV. The
engine is a rotary Wankel engine. It has a mass of 450 kg and a payload
capacity of 150 kg, with a typical endurance of 17 hours.

An agreement for the MBDA helicopter-borne missile, dubbed Anti-Navire
Léger/Future Air-to-Surface Guided Weapon (Heavy), is a step toward
British and French interdependence, based on a specialization of industrial
skills, a second French official said.

The €500 million
missile program is equally shared between the partner nations. Paris hopes
the consolidation move will send a signal to other governments as European
defense budgets erode, the official said.